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Being poor is different from being broke. Broke usually has an end date. Being poor seems permanent.

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You’re a good man . Here’s a greyhound .

A good, yet sad read. And I know many wealthier people don't expect gratitude for their charity, but the line "Being poor is getting tired of people wanting you to be grateful." made me think of horrible way those entitled schmucks tRump & Vance treated Zelensky.

My pleasure!

A piece I read years ago and still remember, and occasionally refer people too. Powerful writing, as impactful as anything I ever read from Dickens, Zola or Amado.

I read that piece when you wrote it, and reading it again it's a gut-punch all over again. I lived a lot of those words myself as a kid. Thank you for describing it so vividly.

I just went and read it again. Goddamn.

I read Being Poor occasionally to remember. I always add: being poor is so damn expensive. Thanks John.

That is some powerful writing. And those 20 year old comments hit hard too.

This piece belongs next to Terry Pratchett's piece about cheap shoes being more expensive than quality shoes in the long run (spoken by Vimes in one of his Discworld novels)

It made me cry when I read it. I still read it once every couple of years to remember where I came from and the kind of world I work daily to create. So thank you. Thank you for writing down and distributing widely the reality of life for millions of people in America.

Thank you, John, for all that you do.

I will read it. Only those of us that have been poor at one point in our lives, knows how it feels. Very few born wealthy can relate or feel empathy for the poor.

You set a good example, John. Thank you.

Respect.

That poem is how I first got to know you. I’ve shared it in my Geography classes while teaching about relative poverty and ask students to pick out three lines that resonate with them. It really helps drive things home. Thank you, sir. 🙏

I fortunately have only briefly had to watch every penny but in my local municipality where I am a councillor the majority have a constant struggle.

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I live in a small city where you can literally walk from the richest to poorest neighbourhoods.

You've written a lot of good stuff. This is the best.